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Global Eagle to Elevate Airline Passenger Experience Over North America with More SES HTS Satellite Capacity

Written on 23 Jan 2018

Luxembourg, 23 January 2018 – Global Eagle Entertainment Inc. (NASDAQ: ENT) is aiming to provide airline passengers travelling across North America with a connected inflight experience far more like the one passengers enjoy on the ground, tripling the amount of high throughput satellite (HTS) capacity secured with SES Networks aboard the SES-15 satellite.

SES announced today that Global Eagle has secured a major increase of Ku-band capacity on its new hybrid SES-15 HTS satellite to enable the delivery of high-speed broadband and a wide range of inflight communications and operational applications aboard commercial airline flights throughout the US, including the increasingly important US mainland to Hawaii routes.

The multi-year agreement is the latest contract to be signed by Global Eagle. In the past several years, Global Eagle has doubled its capacity with SES Networks on an average of every eight months to meet the rising demand for high-quality inflight connectivity around the world.

“Global Eagle is dedicated to meeting the fast-growing airline passenger demand for inflight connectivity with robust, scalable satellite bandwidth anywhere in the world,” said Joshua Marks, Global Eagle’s Executive Vice President of Connectivity. “With the addition of this significant bandwidth from SES 15, Global Eagle will have the largest satellite aviation network in North America”

“SES operates the largest satellite fleet in the world, delivering secure, scalable capacity that enables SES Networks and our customers serving the aviation industry to stay well ahead of the ever-changing inflight connectivity requirements and demands,” explained John Matlaga, Vice President, Sales Aero & Fixed Data, North America at SES Networks. “Global Eagle and SES have struck this latest agreement to ensure the best possible passenger experience for millions of air travellers catching flights across North America.”

SES-15, which is now operational at 129 degrees West, is designed to serve air travel routes over North America, Latin America, and the Caribbean with a flexible mix of wide beam and spot beam coverage tailored to the requirements of individual airlines.

SES is the world-leading satellite operator and the first to deliver a differentiated and scalable GEO-MEO offering worldwide, with more than 50 satellites in Geostationary Earth Orbit (GEO) and 12 in Medium Earth Orbit (MEO). SES focuses on value-added, end-to-end solutions in two key business units: SES Video and SES Networks. The company provides satellite communications services to broadcasters, content and internet service providers, mobile and fixed network operators, governments and institutions. SES’s portfolio includes ASTRA, O3b and MX1, a leading media service provider that offers a full suite of innovative digital video and media services. SES is listed on the Euronext Paris and Luxembourg Stock Exchange (ticker: SESG). Further information available at: www.ses.com

Global Eagle is a leading provider of media, content, connectivity and data analytics to customers across air, sea and land. Global Eagle offers a fully integrated suite of rich media content and seamless connectivity solutions to airlines, cruise lines, commercial ships, high-end yachts, ferries and land locations worldwide. With approximately 1,500 employees and 50 offices on six continents, the company delivers the highest level of service and real-time support to a diverse customer base. Find out more at: globaleagle.com